Tuesday, January 17, 2023

newfiebangaa plays Willow for NES - Part 3 of 6


In this entry, we enter another cave to fight another of Bavmorda's demons, then get entrusted with the Crest of the Spirits, which must not fall into Bavmorda's hands.



To the east of the Tavern of the Traveler, you'll meet another old man. He'll tell you about two red towers standing side by side at the other side of the lake. Unfortunately, Bavmorda has closed off the road to them.

On the way to the staircase leading into the lake, you'll be attacked by what look like Koopa shells spinning endlessly. There are enemies under the shells that you can beat up, but at this point you can go without fighting them if you want to.

If you enter the Tavern of the Traveler again, you'll find out Madmartigan mumbled something about defeating Bavmorda before he left.

Now that you have the Wakka Seed, you can return to the staircase that takes you into the lake and walk to the other side without incident. At the other side is a cave. Enter the cave and you'll meet Fin Raziel. You'll use the Magic Cane to try to restore Fin Raziel back into human form, only to change her into a bird. Well, at least that's an improvement. (If you don't at this point, you're going to lose your HP as long as you're in the water and you're going to die before you can reach the other side.)


You're now in another part of the land. If you go any further north, you'll see another cave. Further north still is Sorsha, daughter of Queen Bavmorda. She'll ask if you've seen Madmartigan, totally unaware that you've helped him escape. You won't be able to go past her, so don't even try.

With that, there's nothing else to do but enter the cave north of Fin Raziel.

The Cave and The Ghost



You'll definitely want to have the Devil Eye ready, as some of these enemies (such as the flying grey wizard robe of a ghost as well as the faces we fought in the last video) require it.

There are enemies that look like floating bubbles. When they split into two, they'll take 10 MP away from you. You can kill the two bubbles created to get that back and more. You'd better be quick, or else they'll continue to split into two. If there's too many onscreen, they'll knock you back a screen. Oh, and those zombies that turn you into a pig? They're back, but the Devil Eye kills them in two hits at this point in the game. 

Soon after you progress from the entrance to this cave, you'll find a chest. Open it, because it contains the Fleet spell, which lets you instantly exit the cave when you cast it. No longer will you have to walk all the way back to the entrance when you're done!

When you go west and then north to the next part of the cave, you'll be able to take on the boss immediately. Don't even dare, because you won't be able to win just yet. Instead, go east of the first intersection and enter the first cave you see. You'll then be able to go to another cave, where you can find three things: the Demon's Feather, the Metal Shield, and the Book of Magic. The Book of Magic casts the Renew spell, which changes magic-based enemies into weaker ones. The Metal Shield brings your defense up a further 15 points compared to the Dragon Shield, and the Demon's Feather casts the magic of Terstorm, which creates a gust of wind. Be sure you have all of these things before you leave through the opening at the southeast corner, and be sure to equip the Metal Shield.

When you head east from here, you'll meet Zhena, the ghost of the woman who was waiting for her lover. She asks you to find her lover, and gives you her Cross Flute. Enter the cave nearby, and you'll be able to take a shortcut to the intersections that takes you to the boss. Go west, then go north two screens. You'll finally fight the boss, and he's dead easy. Walk up to him, stab him, then stand there as the the needles it shoots out bounce off your shield. Rinse and repeat until it's dead. The demon will turn into Muzh, Zhena's lover. Bavmorda turned him into a demon and commanded him to guard the door forever. The battle has left him half dead, but the Cross Flute plays and summons Zhena, who disappears with Muzh. Muzh leaves a note saying that Bavmorda fears the power of the spirits as well as just people. You'll also learn the Bombard spell from this note. From there, you can leave the cave from the door near the boss room.

The Two Towers


The path north leads to the two towers that you heard about earlier. When you first reach this area, go to the first doorway that you see, which is in between the two towers. Inside is a woman caring for Elora Danan, the sacred future queen that will overthrow Bavmorda. She wants you to call the Spirit of Earth down to the Sacred Tower, as the two spirits - the Spirit of Sky and the Spirit of Earth - are waiting for you at the top of the towers. When you summon them, change shall come.

To the right of Elora's caretaker is the first tower.


The path here is relatively straightforward, and the torches light up as you go. The fact that they also light up in the floor below you (which you can also see) is a pretty nice touch.

It may seem to take forever, but you'll eventually reach the top, where you'll meet the Spirit of the Sky. He has taken Bavmorda has made his voice inaudible, and has inhabited an old man's body to tell you what's going on. He then puts his power and essence into a blue crystal, which he gives you, before telling you to scale the west tower.

Since you've completed the east tower, you can now use the Fleet magic to get back to the bottom and enter the west tower. Be careful, as you will see monsters on the way up this time around, despite this being a palette-swapped mirror image of the tower you just left. You'll also need to keep the Devil Eye ready, as there are monsters here that require it.

Remember the bubble monsters that can only be killed with the Devil Eye sword? Well, you'll find them in the third floor. When you have four on the screen, you can keep killing two so that they can continue to split into four. Just make sure there's no more than four, or you're going to be pushed back. Since you get 180 experience points - 90 per bubble monster - every time they split, and they don't really attack you, this is the best way to grind for experience points if you really need them.

Just like last time, you'll reach the top, and you'll meet the Spirit of Earth. Talk to him. After talking about how Queen Bavmorda has confined the power of Fin Raziel, whom he has placed on the earth, he'll put his power and essence into the Red Crystal, which he gives to you. He then tells you to meet Elora Danan in the center tower. Go there and you will obtain the Crest of the Spirits. The Crest must not fall into evil hands, especially Bavmorda's, or else the power of the spirits will disappear and Bavmorda will live forever. You must head to Nockmaar, Bavmorda's castle, and destroy the evil once and for all!

No comments:

Post a Comment